I’ve been reading John Truby’s The Anatomy of Story and find it very informative. I finished reading his chapter on character development when I needed a break. My husband and I hied off to a movie, Up in the Air. The way the George Clooney character developed could have been directly out of Truby’s work. I was spellbound, expecting and seeing the next stage of the character’s transformation.

So, I recommend reading this chapter and then seeing the movie. Clooney transforms his character from detached to someone who begins to feel emotion. The character is not complete by the end credits, which makes the movie all the more intriguing to those of us who like to develop strong characters. They don’t all have to begin as positive human beings, but they do have to face conflict, moral and psychological needs, and grow in the process. In fact, Truby wrote a brief analysis of this very point on his site.

All in all, an interesting juxtaposition of reading and cinema.